Duke Nukem: Zero Hour
| genre = Third-person shooter | modes = Single player Multiplayer | ratings = | media = Game Pak }} Duke Nukem: Zero Hour is a third-person shooter video game in the Duke Nukem series, developed by Eurocom for the Nintendo 64. The game uses a relatively large 32 megabyte cartridge and could also utilize the Expansion Pak to allow for better graphics, at the cost of slowing down the frame rate"The graphics on one hand look nice but when the expansion pak is used, the frame rate goes down the drain." - Gamegoldies review of D.N. Zero Hour 2008-11-15. It has a 4 player split-screen multiplayer mode that uses a first-person view. The game has many plot elements that are much more mature and darker in theme than those of other games in the series, which are generally more light-hearted and fun. For example in one stage, Duke time-travels to the Victorian Era and finds the still-fresh murder scene of Mary Jane Kelly. She had been slain at her residence of 13 Miller's Court on November 9, 1888 by Jack the Ripper. In another, Duke must travel through an alternate time-line New York, which has been devastated by atomic warfare and most of humanity has been wiped out. Plot Duke Nukem: Zero Hour is set in four distinct time periods: Present Day, Post-Apocalyptic Near-Future, Wild West and Victorian Era (London, 1888). Each time period has its own theme and weaponry. For example, Present Day has modern-day weapons such as automatic handguns, submachine guns and combat shotguns. The Wild West has revolvers and lever-action rifles, and features Cowboy and Native American Pigs. The Victorian Era has fictional, science-fiction weaponry such as the Voltaic Projector, and features zombies. Duke is called into action via the Government, as a new alien, led by Zero, appears, making trouble. Duke pummels the alien menace through the streets of New York with the help of some marines, and eventually gains access to the Statue of Liberty. Here, Duke discovers the alien's true plan, to go back in time and mess with historic events, hoping they can destroy Duke's colorful heritage, so that it would be easier to take out the Earth in the future. However, Duke manages to figure this out and unwittingly uses an alien time machine to go into the post-apocalyptic near-future, where the aliens have devastated the Earth with nuclear war, running humans to near-extinction. In this time zone, Duke battles the alien menace of the future, who have created an army of the undead from those who had died in the nuclear war's ensuing fallout. Duke eventually meets up with a small band of resistance fighters in the headquarters of the United States Army in New York City. There, they tell him that the aliens are indeed screwing with the Earth's history, so much that this future is just one of many. If Duke wants to restore peace to the Earth's history, he'll have to go back in time and fight for it. The resistance have managed to develop their own time machine in order to send Duke Nukem back in time to re-write the corrupted history, and destroy the aliens. After finishing his business here and defeating Giant Hog, Duke is sent back to the American Old West, where aliens have taken over in an effort to mine the Earth for its resources. In the Old West, due to technical difficulties, Duke must make do with whatever period weaponry he can find. However, they eventually manage to send a few of his weapons back after some tinkering. The aliens have begun creating super-soldiers in order to combat the human resistance, in the past and the future. After blowing up a ship containing the super-soldiers, Duke makes his way to the town of Roswell, New Mexico. There, he stops an alien mining project before they can succeed, and defeats Cyborg Scorpion. Duke is then informed, that it's not just American history that is being altered, the aliens have also been to the Victorian Era of London. In the Victorian Era, Duke is plagued by the biological weaponry the aliens have been manufacturing. Zombies litter the streets. Duke finds his way onto a zeppelin, which he manages to escape by flying off in an aeroplane. However, Duke not being an experienced pilot crashes the plane almost immediately into the moat of a castle. Duke fights his way into the castle, which the aliens have taken over. In the castle, Duke confronts some new and tougher enemies, some of which are from the future. While exploring the castle, Duke stumbles upon the "brains" of the alien operation, the Brainstorm, and destroys it. After demolishing the castle, and apparently eliminating the alien threat, Duke is ready for some R'n'R. Unfortunately, the aliens are making one final push for world domination. The aliens put their time-meddling in overdrive and cause a rift in the space-time continuum, and now aliens from all of history are pouring into New York City in a final desperate attempt to destroy humanity. Once again fighting through the streets of New York City, Duke enters the alien mothership. He infiltrates the mothership, and destroys it. Upon its destruction, he is confronted by the alien overlord, Zero. Duke has the final battle with Zero on the rooftops of the city. After killing the beast, it appears Duke has finally set things right. Duke cleaned up Manhattan from the alien menace, and gets ready to relax with his "reward". Enemies and Bosses Normal Enemies * Apocalypse Zombies - The mutant flesh-hungry Zombies of the apocalypse, these roam the shattered cities and desert wastelands of the first episode. They are cannibals: once human, they have devolved into undead eating their own kind. They are slow moving and not too intelligent, although they are persistent. * Enforcers - Armed with blaster pistols, wearing silver armor the reptilian Enforcer are the easiest in dispatching. Since their are the basic infrary of the alien army they also can swin underwater. The Enforcer will drop either blaster pistols for dual wielding or ammunition when it is killed. There are four vicious variations of the enforcers, the captain, battle, sniper, and cyborg Enforcers. * Chimera - These are alternate versions of the ferocious Protector Drone, these monsters have only a single purpose: defending their alien masters to the death. They can take incredible amounts of damage before dying, move very fast, jump very high, and can claw you horribly at close range. On top of all this, it is reported that these beasts have the nasty ability to breath poisonous gas to their victims. * Captain Enforcers - Like the the basic Enforcers they are armed with dual blaster pistols. They wear golden armor and are a bit more resistant than the basic Enforcers, but they can still be easily dispatched with blaster pistols. * Battle Enforcers - These alien lizards wear black armor and are armed with twin SMGs. They are more resistant than the captain enforcers and fire extremely fast with their machine guns so Duke have to take them down fast. * Sniper Enforcers - These are the elite of the enforcers, they wear black armor like the battle enforcers and are equiped with sniper rifles. They are extremely dangerous and can kill Duke with an single shot, so He better watch out and take cover and kill them with Sniper rifles. * Cyborg Enforcers - Take a Battle Enforcer and rebuild it with a range of cybernetic implants: an extra pair of arms, implant laser gattling guns, cyberoptic targeting, and bionic legs, and you've got a Cyborg Enforcer. These Cyborgs move faster, jump further, and are more accurate than normal Enforcers. Worse, they won't drop any weapons or ammo on dying. You're going to need a firm defensive strategy and some heavy power to withstand repeated attacks from these metallic mayhem bringers. * Duke Nukem robot-clones - As the name inply they are robotic clones of Duken Nukem, created by the alien army as their ultimate weapon. They are extremely dangerous so Duke will have to use his strongest weapons to destroy them. * Octabrain - This character's abundant brain mass and specialized trifocal vision combine to make the Octabrain a formidable alien weapon against all sentient life on Earth. Their method of attack is a powerful blast of mental energy released against its prey, thus weakening and confusing its intended victim. If the victim doesn't die from the mind blast, the Octabrain's powerful razor sharp teeth are ready to finish the job. The Octabrain prefers dark and secluded habitats from which to wage its attack. A generally unprotected, though tough and leathery, body offsets their immense mental power. Keep an eye out for these psionic punks in dark or water-heavy areas. Keep moving to avoid their blasts and rip 'em a new one with your highest gauge weapon. * Pig Cops - The Pig Cops are mutated alien operatives positioned to suppress residual human opposition and to police the new centers of alien power on Earth. Their distinct warthog-like appearance and aggressiveness make them easy to spot but difficult to overcome. They brandish pump-action shotguns and have a special surprise ground level attack. These characters have extremely high intolerance to the presence of humans, and exhibit blind rage when they detect human scent. Also, protective body armor worn beneath their uniforms give them added endurance. When killed, Pig Cops may drop either their shotgun or ammo. * War Pig - They are Pig Cops in the post-apocalyptíc era, they wear black night vision goggles, black body armor, and explosive grenade launchers. They are extremely dangerous as they fire explosive grenades even in the dark, so Duke will have to take them out with sniper rifles and night vision in a safe distance. * Riot Pigs - With silver full-body armor, a visored helmet, and a toxic gas grenade launcher, it's hard to miss the Riot Pigs. Riot Pigs are immune to toxic gas as they can breath it, so Duke cannot use it as a weapon against them. Naturally, you'll have to equip yourself with a gas mask to avoid being damaged by these lingering green gasses. Again, Claw-12 shotgun is your best bet against them. * Plague Zombies - Corpses reanimated by the alien virus of the Victorian time zone. They need fresh human tissue to keep the virus working in their decomposing bodies. They are slow moving and not too intelligent, although they will be persistent. They will be able to absorb a lot of damage, making them dangerous if they can corner Duke. All the zombies are carrying the virus which can kill Duke instantly if he comes close after shooting them. * Recon Patrol Vehicle (RPV) - This sleek and deadly anti-gravity powered reconnaissance vehicle is operated by specially trained Pig Cops for the purpose of maintaining alien control in areas of human resistance. The attack mode of this craft is aerial strafing by side mounted laser cannons. The pilots of these craft are protected by an automatic pilot ejection mechanism that activates milliseconds before impact during a crash. Bomber RPVs will have a new attack mode: bombing runs, which scatter gas or explosive grenades around. Gunship RPVs will make strafing attacks with plasma or laser weapons. * Scuttlers - These evil little multi-legged insectile parasites will scurry along the floors and ceilings, before dropping onto Duke and stinging or biting him. Their movement and attack modes make them a different style of opponent…the extremely dangerous style! Scuttlers are spawned by a larger alien creature called the Spawner. This will continue to produce new Scuttlers as the old ones are destroyed, so taking out this monster will be especially important. * Sentry Drone - Mechanized death, there's no better way to describe these airborne alien watchdogs. By the time you hear their high pitched whine as they engage their anti-grav propulsion units, it's probably too late. The drone will swiftly collide with its target and explode with great force. Latest reports suggest that the drones have been refitted with defensive evasion microchips. Patrol Drones will perform a different function, following a predefined patrol route and shooting at anyone they encounter with plasma or rocket weapons. Duke can therefore blow them away or simply wait for them to pass before continuing. Underwater Drones which will home in on Duke, firing torpedoes. * Sentry Guns - Mounted on tripods, these bad boys will stop you in your track with rounds of plasma, Scatter Lasers, and grenades. Like OJ always says, "Look out!" * Spore Eggs - These gas-filled death spores are exactly what you DON'T want to accidentally blow up. They're usually found in groups and - when shot - release cloud after cloud of poisonous gas. Time your attack on them wrong, and you could wind up the victim of green gas death…and no one wants that. Bosses *Giant Hog - the first boss. *General Custer - the second boss. *Cyborg Scorpion - the third boss. *Jack the Ripper - the fourth boss. *Brainstorm - the fifth boss. *Zero - the sixth and final boss. Arsenal * M-80 Pulse Gun (The Blaster) - A semi-automatic particle cannon firing bolts of energy that impact instantly. This weapon inflicts relatively low damage, but Duke can pick up a second for some twin-fisted action. This gun does more damage than you'd expect when using two, and many enemies drop ammo for it. The M-80 uses blaster cells for ammunition. * "Peacekeeper" .45 Revolver - Duke can use two .45s at once, and while they can only hold six shots apiece, they inflict heavy damage. Watch your ammo count when using this weapon, it goes pretty quickly. There are two types of ammo for it, your .45 rounds, and magnum rounds, which are extremely powerful, but typically of limited supply. * Claw-12 Shotgun - This is a close assault weapon. A pump-action 12-gauge shotgun, this weapon is perfect for up close and personal encounters. Use the Claw-12 when you are facing a limited number of enemies, or in tight spaces. The Claw-12 uses shotgun shells, and can be upgraded with an auto-loader which increases the rate of fire dramatically for 24 shots. * Sawed-off Shotgun - A double-barreled 12-gauge shotgun, this weapon inflicts devastating damage at point blank range, but falls off rapidly at a distance. Make sure you are not facing a large pack of aliens while using this weapon; the slow fire rate will prove fatal—to you. This weapon uses shotgun shells for ammo. * Lever Action .30-30 Rifle - A decent rate of fire combined with good range and good damage make this an excellent all around weapon. This weapon is similar to the shotguns in that you don't want to be using it against large numbers of aliens, but it is more versatile due to the increased range, just think of it as your Boomstick. The .30-30 uses rifle bullets for ammunition. * MP-10 SMG - A 10mm submachine gun, excellent for spraying down rooms filled with enemies. The MP-10 has no reload, and two can be used at once for twice the firepower. Rarely will you have enough ammo to use this weapon constantly, but it is excellent in specific situations requiring a rate of constant suppressing fire. The MP-10 uses SMG clips for ammo. * Gattling Gun - The bigger brother to the MP-10, this weapon is much older, but all the meaner for it. A hand-turned crank spits out heavy slugs at an impressive speed, and the damage is very high. Another toy to be used against crowds of aliens, but not to be wasted when a different weapon will do the job more efficiently. This weapon uses gattling gun bullets as ammunition. * AGL-9 Grenade Launcher / Radium Cyanide Launcher - Rotary feed semi-automatic grenade launchers, one firing explosive munitions, the other launching a delayed blast of toxic radium cyanide. Both are excellent for crowd control, and both are dangerous to the user. Note that you can use a gas mask with the radium cyanide launcher to prevent damage to yourself, and fire into a pack of aliens with impunity. Grenades and radium cyanide grenades are used for ammo. * Pipebombs - Homemade remote triggered explosives, you can throw as many as you like to set up a trap, then detonate them simultaneously for an impressive explosion. It is possible to detonate them in midair, though be careful, it is easy to damage yourself by doing so. * Dynamite & Bombs - These are uncontrolled brothers of the pipebombs—light fuse, throw, and get away from the explosion. * CTX-2000 Tripbombs - Explosive charges, triggered when the laser between them is tripped, these little packages of joy are best used for ambushes,or covering an escape. An upgraded version is available in the form of the magnavolt tripbomb, which uses an arc of electricity as the tripwire. * Freezethrower - A dangerous weapon of alien design, this fun little piece of equipment sprays clouds of pale blue frost that freeze enemies in their tracks and cause them to shatter. This weapon is powerful, and the ammo consumption is lower than you'd think, given the constant rate of fire. The only drawback is the fairly limited range of the spray. The freezethrower uses cryogenic crystals as ammunition. * Gamma Cannon - Another alien crafted weapon, the gamma cannon discharges a hail of bouncing energy bolts. This is an excellent weapon in enclosed spaces; the rebounding munitions create a lethal field of fire. Ammo consumption is fairly rapid, so it isn't advisable to be using this as your primary weapon in all situations. The gamma cannon uses gamma crystals for ammo. * Voltaic Projector (Volt Cannon) - An impressive weapon, the volt cannon discharges streams of electricity at enemies, sticking to your targets and frying them. This weapon is high damage and relatively low ammo consumption, so take advantage of it once you get a hold of it. And don't go discharging the cannon underwater! The volt cannon uses volt boxes for ammo. * .50 Sniper Rifle - This weapon is a high caliber sniper rifle—at your disposal for eliminating enemies at long ranges safely and effectively. Three levels of zoom are provided to account for varying distances, and the damage dealt by this weapon is quite impressive. Note that Duke's mobility is severely curtailed when zoomed in, so it's best not to use this weapon with aliens nearby. The sniper rifle uses .50 rifle rounds, and can also use the more damaging Armor-piercing Rounds. * Havoc Multilauncher - A highly powerful weapon delivering a devastating payload of three rockets, this weapon is a god-send when you need to put down an enemy ''now. ''Typically your weapon of choice against bosses and other large foes, the havoc is also quite useful in eliminating entire squads of aliens. The havoc multilauncher uses either standard multilauncher rockets, or the more effective (and rare) heatseeking rockets. * BMF Thunderstrike "Big Mother Fucking Thunderstrike" aka Plasma Cannon - This is a phased particle pulse cannon, firing lethal blasts of transmagnetic energy. This little toy can wipe out entire rooms filled with enemies in a single shot. Given the extremely limited ammo capacity, this tool is best left in your holster until needed. The thunderstrike uses BMF cells for ammunition. Levels * Training Mission: Episode One * Mean Streets * Liberty or Death * Nuclear Winter * Wetworld (Secret Level) * Fallout * Under Siege * Boss Hog (Boss) * Dry Town * Jailbreak * Up Ship Creek * Fort Roswell * Probing the Depths * Cyborg Scorpion (Boss) * The Whitechapel Killings * Dawn of the Duke * Hydrogen Bomb * The Rack * Going Down (Secret Level) * Brainstorm (Boss) * The Brothers Nukem * Alien Mother * Zero Hour (Boss) Music # Main Title Screen # Intro Story # Mean Streets # Liberty or Death # Boss Hog # Dry Town # Jail Break # Up Ship Creek / Fort Roswell (?) # The Whitechapel Killings # Hydrogen Bomb # Alien Ship # Alien Mother Trivia * The level "Dry Town" is a reference to Nintendo policies at the time forbidding the depiction of alcohol in games on their consoles. A poster can be found in the level declaring it is a "Dry Town by order of Sheriff Ted Nindo." * Other posters take rather crude digs at rival franchises, with advertisments for "GoldenGuy 069" and "Bolok: Alien Hunter" among them. References External links *3D Realms Site *Wikipedia *Mobygames *Eurocom *Cheat Codes *Video Walkthrough by ultratree85 *Video Walkthrough by Throom *IGN review *GameGoldies review Category:Games Category:Other Category:Duke Nukem: Zero Hour